North Carolina Hemp Bill Returns to Raleigh as THC Rules Face a New Deadline
North Carolina lawmakers have not approved HB 328, but a July 30 re-referral sets up a possible House decision on proposed THC restrictions before November 12.
North Carolina House Bill 328 remains unresolved after the House recorded its conference report and re-referred the measure to the Rules, Calendar, and Operations Committee on July 30. The action was not a House vote to approve or reject the bill.
Lawmakers are expected to return to Raleigh during the week of August 3 for discussions and possible action. The next major question is whether the House will adopt the conference report, reject it or take no action.
If enacted, the proposal would sharply restrict certain hemp-derived products statewide beginning November 12, 2026. It would prohibit final-form hemp-derived consumable products containing more than 0.4 milligrams of total THC per container and products containing synthetic or chemically converted cannabinoids.
What changed on July 30
The House recorded the conference report without recording a vote, then sent the bill back to its Rules, Calendar, and Operations Committee. The North Carolina General Assembly’s bill record lists both July 30 actions and shows no House vote on the conference report.
The Senate adopted the conference report on July 2 by a 37-6 vote. HB 328 remains pending in the House.
Until the House acts and any required final steps are completed, HB 328 is not law. Nothing changes for North Carolina consumers on July 30 solely because the conference report was recorded.
What the proposal would prohibit
The conference-report text defines a prohibited finished hemp-derived consumable product as a final-form product intended for human ingestion or inhalation that contains more than 0.4 milligrams of total THC per container, measured using the innermost packaging in direct contact with the product offered for retail sale.
The definition also covers products containing any synthetic or chemically converted cannabinoid. The proposal is focused on covered finished consumable products, not every hemp product. The text excludes hemp products intended for topical application, as well as seeds and certain seed-derived ingredients recognized as safe by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, from its definition of a hemp-derived consumable product.
The measure would also make it unlawful to knowingly sell or deliver a hemp-derived consumable product to someone under 21. Sellers would have to request proof of age when they have reasonable grounds to believe a prospective buyer is under 21.
People under 21 would also be prohibited from possessing a hemp-derived consumable product under the proposed law. A violation of that section would be a Class 2 misdemeanor.
Penalties could reach $50,000
The proposed enforcement provisions would impose civil penalties for selling or delivering a prohibited finished hemp-derived consumable product. A first violation would carry a proposed $10,000 civil penalty.
A second violation within three years of the first would carry a proposed $25,000 penalty. A third or subsequent violation within three years of the first would carry a proposed $50,000 penalty. Each violation would count separately, and retail establishments could be responsible for violations committed by owners, officers, managers, employees or agents acting within the scope of their employment.
The proposed text also would allow the attorney general or the district attorney for the prosecutorial district where the violation occurred to bring a civil action to recover the penalties.
The under-21 sales and possession provisions separately would make violations a Class 2 misdemeanor. The $10,000-to-$50,000 civil-penalty schedule is tied to sales or deliveries of prohibited finished hemp-derived consumable products.
November 12 deadline is not yet in effect
The conference report says the relevant provisions would take effect November 12, 2026, and apply to offenses and products manufactured, sold, delivered or possessed on or after that date.
The bill describes the state standard as conforming to a federal total-THC standard scheduled to take effect on the same date. That federal deadline is part of the proposal’s legal context; it does not mean the North Carolina restrictions are already effective.
Industry and law-enforcement arguments
Law-enforcement and prosecutorial groups have urged House members to adopt the conference report, arguing that the measure would establish age restrictions and give authorities tools to address intoxicating hemp products. Those statements are advocacy positions, not independent findings about the effects of the proposal.
Hemp producers and industry representatives have raised a different concern: that a 0.4-milligram total-THC limit would remove many products now sold in North Carolina, including products they say are marketed as low-THC or high-CBD goods. WUNC reported that industry representatives view the threshold as potentially broad enough to threaten much of the existing market.
Axios Raleigh reported that the House’s return during the week of August 3 could become a pivotal point for the legislation and for businesses that sell or produce hemp-derived THC products.
What happens next
The House must decide whether to accept the conference report as written. It could adopt the report, reject it or leave the measure pending.
For residents, retailers and producers, the practical point is that the proposed restrictions, misdemeanor provisions and civil penalties are not currently in force. If the bill becomes law, businesses would need to review product formulations, packaging, age-verification procedures and delivery practices before November 12, 2026. Consumers under 21 would face proposed possession restrictions beginning on that date.
Sources
- North Carolina House Bill 328 bill record
- HB 328 proposed conference committee substitute
- WUNC: Law enforcement, prosecutors call on NC House to pass hemp regulations
- Axios Raleigh: Hemp industry worries North Carolina will soon ban most intoxicating THC products
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